Chapter 294 Coercion

In just two days, they dug a tunnel leading to the cold palace in the imperial city and safely brought out a living person.

Wen Zhiming gasped upon hearing this.

If he had known that his master knew someone with such abilities, why would he have pretended to be stupid for two months, feigning affection with Li Yan'er to gain the emperor's trust and thus save his father and mother?

Just ask this expert to dig a tunnel and steal the person out.

Wen Zhiming looked mournful. "Master, why did you take so long to come? If you had come earlier, I would have avoided suffering for two months."

Ye Guhong explained helplessly, "After the incident at the Prince of Anshun's mansion, Master went to invite this Miss Yue, but Yue Jiaoman was aloof and did not want to get involved in matters of imperial power, so she resolutely refused. This time, Master only went to invite her with a try-it-out mentality. Perhaps it is because you now hold great power and the Emperor's defeat is inevitable, and Yue Jiaoluo has been encouraging you out of curiosity, that she is willing to help."

Wen Zhiming felt relieved upon hearing this.

No path in life is wasted; every step has its own meaning.

The two were talking right next to Meng Xiyao, but Meng Xiyao showed no signs of waking up.

Wen Zhiming asked worriedly, "She has been unconscious. Could she have been drugged?"

Just as Ye Guhong was about to speak, the door behind them was pushed open, and a woman who looked to be around forty years old entered carrying a set of clothes.

“She doesn’t trust me and doesn’t want to come with me. I can’t get her out without her being drugged. The drug is strong enough that she’ll need to sleep for at least twelve hours.”

Wen Zhiming realized that this woman was not among the group that Ye Guhong had introduced to him earlier, but from what she said, he knew that Meng Xiyao was the one who had saved her.

Ye Guhong had previously mentioned that Yue Jiaoman was Yue Jiaoluo's senior sister. Yue Jiaoluo was only in her early twenties, while Yue Jiaoman was already middle-aged. The gap between these two senior and junior sisters was too great; they looked more like mother and daughter than senior and junior sisters.

Wen Zhiming suppressed his doubts and said respectfully, "Greetings, senior. I am grateful for your righteous help in rescuing my family."

Yue Jiaoman scrutinized Wen Zhiming with a critical eye, and finally said expressionlessly, "Go out, don't delay me from changing this girl's clothes."

Meng Xiyao was brought out from the tunnel, and she was covered in dust and definitely needed to be cleaned.

Wen Zhiming and Ye Guhong immediately left the room.

Ye Guhong smiled and said, "I didn't lie to you, did I? Yue Jiaoman is known for her aloofness. Actually, her attitude towards you is already quite good. If she dislikes someone, she won't say a word. Fortunately, her junior sister's personality is the opposite, otherwise dealing with them would be really difficult."

Since becoming the King of the Northern Frontier, Wen Zhiming has rarely encountered people who disdain to pay him any attention.

But compared to Yue Jiaoluo's incessant chatter, he preferred to deal with someone like Yue Jiaoman who was sparing with words.

“She has helped me a great deal; even if she doesn’t speak to me, she is still my honored guest.”

As the master and apprentice were talking, a soldier rushed in and said to Wen Zhiming, "Your Highness, a lot of people have come to the Prince's mansion. They all say they want Your Highness to save the lives of their relatives. Commander Ren sent me to invite you to come and take a look."

"Oh, then I'll go join in the fun too." Ye Guhong walked ahead as soon as he heard this, and Wen Zhiming smiled helplessly and followed.

The area outside the Prince Anshun's Mansion was indeed bustling with activity, filled with elderly people and children dressed in fine clothes, all weeping and lamenting.

When Ren Yang saw Wen Zhiming arrive, he stepped forward and reported, "Your Highness, they are all relatives of officials in the capital. I heard that after the morning court session this day, the Emperor imprisoned all the civil and military officials in the palace, forbidding them from visiting or leaving. These people are worried that the officials will suffer misfortune, so they have come to ask Your Highness for help in rescuing their relatives."

Upon hearing that the person in front of them was the King of the Northern Frontier, everyone became even more excited.

A cute little girl mustered up her courage and hugged Wen Zhiming's trouser leg.

"This humble servant greets the King of the Northern Frontier. I beg Your Highness to save my father. I do not want to be a fatherless child. My mother says that only you can save him."

An elderly woman with white hair trembled as she stepped forward, but was stopped by a guard beside Wen Zhiming. The old woman wiped away her tears and cried out, "Please, King of Northern Frontier, have mercy and help save our loved ones! If you do not help them, the Emperor will surely drag them down with you!"

The crowd cried out in unison, "King of the Northern Frontier, have mercy! King of the Northern Frontier, save us!"

Wen Zhiming had just seen that Meng Xiyao had been successfully rescued, and thought that he would no longer have to worry about being coerced by the emperor. He did not expect that the emperor was so insidious that he had imprisoned all the civil and military officials in the palace.

No wonder no official has shown up since he entered the city.

These civil and military officials are all the emperor's men, and most of them are not familiar with him. This damned emperor actually used the lives of his own people to threaten him. He really will stop at nothing.

But he couldn't just ignore the lives of these people.

Firstly, these people are pillars of the nation, and it's impossible to replace them all. Secondly, they all have families behind them, and if they were all to be buried with the dog emperor, the impact would be enormous.

Having figured this out, Wen Zhiming said gently, "Please rest assured, everyone. The imprisonment of these officials is directly related to me. I will not ignore them and will try to rescue them as soon as possible. Please give me some time and go back to wait for news."

These officials' relatives were also desperate; when the King of Hell is at war, the little devils suffer.

With the two kings vying for power, the officials became the emperor's trump card. Knowing that the emperor would not release the prisoners, they thought of seeking help from the Northern Frontier King. To their surprise and delight, the Northern Frontier King was so easy to talk to.

Grateful and preparing to leave, I heard someone running towards me crying, squeezing into the middle of the crowd.

"It's terrible! There's been a murder at the palace gates! The Emperor says that if the Northern Frontier King doesn't withdraw his troops, he will kill one official every day. Today, Inspector Wu was killed, and tomorrow the next official to be executed will be decided by drawing lots..."

The censor is a fifth-rank official, and the first choice is an official of a mid-ranking position. This shows that the emperor does not follow rank and acts arbitrarily, killing whomever he wants first. The drawing of lots further indicates that other officials may be the unlucky ones tomorrow.

Upon hearing this, two people fainted on the spot. They were relatives of Inspector Wu. The others were filled with sorrow and fear, as if they were all in a state of panic.

The group of people who were about to leave stopped in their tracks, looking at Wen Zhiming with teary eyes.

"King of the Northern Frontier, could you please withdraw your troops first? Give our loved ones a chance to live."

"Yes, the King of Northern Frontier just said himself that this matter is directly related to you. Your feud with the Emperor should not implicate innocent officials. Please withdraw your troops. Have some mercy..."

"We don't care who becomes emperor, as long as our loved ones are safe. Now only the King of the Northern Frontier can save our loved ones."